


Anthem of Angels

by RipJawWolfFang



Series: Cait X sole survivor [3]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Angst, Angst and Tragedy, Cait/female sole survivor - Freeform, Cait/nora, Coma, Cute, Drama, F/F, Fluff, Infection, Major Character Injury, Pain, Poison, Sicfic, Sick Character, Tragedy, cait/sole survivor - Freeform, hurt comfort
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-18
Updated: 2017-04-15
Packaged: 2018-06-09 05:59:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6892906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RipJawWolfFang/pseuds/RipJawWolfFang
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cait is faced with some very hard decisions, as her newly built life is torn out from under her. The sole survivor becomes horribly ill after an injury, and barely holding on what can her lover and best friend do to comfort her?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. To close

**Author's Note:**

> I went with Nora for the female sole survivors name because that's her name if you choose a male character :3 
> 
> Hope you enjoy reading this as much as I did writing it xoxox

Green eyes scan across the halls in front of them, looking for any trace of the enemy like a hawk on its prey. The ground was hard, cold, concrete, as where the walls, and the ceiling and the narrow passageways limited the pairs movements. 

The vault dweller, Nora and her lover, Cait had traveled the entire commonwealth together for well over a year now. Rarely parting, especially when things got rough. They had been in so many tight spots, dodged so many bullets, soaked up so much radiation together that it was almost second nature to be fighting at each others side. 

Somehow though this hallway in the middle of an abandoned building just outside of Dimond city felt different; colder, darker, quieter. They could both feel it, but neither brought it up. There was some big rewards to be gained here after all.

A huge pile of caps and Chems had to be abandoned when raiders where killed and chased off by feral's, easily dispatched by the more experienced and better equipped pair. What was strange though was that despite the locations supposed rewards, and the story of how they came to be there, The pair hadn't spotted a single hostile of any kind. No riders. No ghouls. Nothing. 

"I get the feelin' somethin's messin' with us." The redhead grumbled quietly to her companion, who only silently nodded in response. There was definitely something about this place that felt... Off... 

"Stay close." She finally whispered back after a long pause and a few quiet steps along the darkened hall, grey eyes scanning ahead and finding nothing. 

Cait moved closer, watching there behind so nothing could sneak up on the pair and get them while there back was turned. Dim light seeped in from the collapsing roof, and her heart was pounding so hard she could hear it in the unnatural stillness. 

Nora on the other hand preferred the dark, it gave her the edge that she needed to slink around unnoticed. Still, the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end as a soft creek echoed from below somewhere. Where where the ghouls? They had crept around plenty of raider corpses so far, so where where the Feral's that attacked them? It's not like they where known to leave food this quickly. 

Another step forward, slowly making there way down the stairs at the end of the hall. There was an uneasy creek beneath them. 

Suddenly the sole survivors foot crashed through a weak bored, becoming jammed painfully. She sifted to pull herself back out but before she could even process what was happening a huge creature, skin shiny and teeth glistening with blood, rushed from the darkness. It slammed into her, grabbing her shoulder in its jaws and chomping down. A pained cry escaped her lips and she tried to fire her gun into the huge beasts chest.

Cait had almost missed the whole thing, but when she turned at the sudden noise she was looking at a huge, irradiated bear, not like any she had seen before. It seemed more savage, bloodier, and had a thick dark red coat where it's skin was not burned from the radiation. It was also skinny, sickly. Despite its massive size, it was almost skin and bones.

"Shite!" She grabbed pointed her shotgun directly at its head, "hold on!" She fired the shot into its skull, sending it tumbling back.

Nora gave a grown and fell back against the stairs, shaking so hard she couldn't lift her gun again to keep fighting. 

"Stay here." Cait pushed passed her friend, not having time to stop, she needed that thing dead. reloading as she moved, the redhead followed the beast down, finding it already struggling to get up, and emptying another few shots into its head. It almost felt to easy. Most Yao guai didn't go down that quickly. It wasn't right but there was no time to think on the dead beast now sprawled on the basement floor, and she raced back to her friend on the stairs who had managed to pull out a stimpak and injected herself in the leg.

The darker haired women was gasping though, and gritting her teeth to hold back the intense pain. Her hand over the wound to try to slow the flow of blood until the medicine could work. 

"It's okay, darlin'..." Cait sat down next to her lover, pulling the injured vault dweller into her arms and holding her close. She was confident, the injury looked bad, but they had both been through worse. "Lemmy' fix it." Carefully she undid the back of the blue suit, shifting it down carefully to reveal the wound. Nora gave a soft, pained gasp and tears finally escaped. 

Huge ripped open gashes from canine teeth there soaked in thick red blood that looked more purple in the scattered moonlight. the stimpak had started the work of slowing the flow, but this wound itself was deep and Cait quickly realised that her lovers right collarbone had been snapped by the force of the assault. 

"Okay, love." She tried to sooth as she took out the bandages from the vault dwellers pack, starting to wrap the wound she knew she wasn't skilled enough to stitch. "I'm gonna' give you somethin' for the pain. Just lemmy' finish this first." 

The sole survivor nodded again, gritting her teeth against the sharp stabbing sensation that took over with each touch. She tried to say something, wanting to apologise for the mistake that put them both in danger; but she couldn't catch her breath all of a sudden.

"Shh, sit still. Ya gonna' mess up me bandagin'" Cait scolded lightly, finally finishing patching up the torn flesh as best she could. "There, all done. You alright." 

There was a crackled laugh, 'never better' Nora wanted to throw back, but still couldn't get anything out. It didn't matter though, because the sharp sting of the painkiller being pushed into the vein in her good arm and her sarcastic thoughts where quickly overcome by the Chems, making her whole body relax involuntarily. 

The high dose would keep her calm, let the stimpaks do there job so the Irish women could move her friend in the morning after a rest, hopefully without doing anymore damage. It was to much to try to move her now, she probably wouldn't get all the way to Dimond city in this state. 

Slowly she lifted her friend and carefully moved her back up the stairs with some difficulty. Nora was light on her own, but she was dead weight, her consciousness slipping to far to get her limbs moving to help. The leather armour didn't help either, getting in the way and making it harder to find a good grip that wouldn't be to painful. Every step made the vault dweller slip a little, and every slip caused a grunt of pain that alerted the younger woman to her friends continued suffering.

They didn't have to go far though, and Cait very quickly had the vault dweller laid out on one of the raiders abandoned dirty matrices. Worried eyes scanning over the damaged body in search of anything she had missed. A mistake could cost the sole survivor her life after all, and she wasn't about to let that happen. Slowly the pain completely left Nora's features, giving way to sleep that she so badly needed now to let everything run its course.

Even though she seemed relaxed and out of pain, The redhead laid down at her side and pulled her in close and whispered to her softly trying to keep whatever was still functioning despite the meds inside Nora's mind off of the injury. 

"It's okay, I'm right here, I won't leave your side." She comforted, at least partly to take her own mind off of what had just happened so quickly it was hard to keep track. She shook a little, fear finally starting to kick in as the adrenaline wore off. Cait really could have lost it all, all over again, I'm just a matter of moments. One slip, one tiny mistake, and her lover could have died in her arms and there was not a damn thing she could have done about it. The whole thing caught up to her as she pulled her dear friend in close. Everything they had been through together, it meant more to her then anything that came before, she wouldn't even be alive if it weren't for Nora.

The redhead took a deep breath to calm herself and settled in for the night, barely sleeping, but knowing that staying up all night would only make her tired and less able to defend the vault dweller tomorrow on the way back. She gave a quick peck on the cheek, though she hoped there was so much medicine coursing through Nora's veins that she wouldn't be able to feel much of anything.


	2. Dimond City

It was a rough night and Cait barely slept despite trying her hardest to catch at least a little shut eye while they where here and relatively safely out of sight. She woke still tired, but smiled when she felt her friend still laying in her arms, hands lightly clutching at her clothes trying to hold onto something for comfort. 

"Rise and shine, love. Lets get you fixed up." She sat slowly, reaching over to touch her cheek; feeling the unnatural cold and immediately snapping into wakefulness. 

"Nora! Damn it! Don't you dare!" She carefully rolled her friend over onto her back, putting her ear to the vault dwellers chest searching for breathing, a heart beat, anything. The immediate relief of hearing her body still fighting hard against her wounds was quickly squashed when the redhead checked her lovers shoulder for signs it was bleeding through. It wasn't, the bandages where still in place though now they where soaked through with something that definitely wasn't blood. 

A thick, but not strong smelling, greenish yellow ooze was seeping through the bandages, remaining undetected the entire night. Worse still, the artery in the darker haired Nora's neck was raised, dark, angry and blue. It was an infection, for sure, but none Cait had ever seen before. Not like this with its strange odourless weeping and utter lack of fever. 

Tired grey eyes flickered open to meet the green in her lovers, though she quickly scrunched them closed as the pain coursed through her. She couldn't even make a sound other then a tired, weak, groan that made it barely past her lips. 

"Stay with me." The redhead encouraged, Cupping a cool cheek in her hand. It didn't make sense, the stimpak should have taken care of any infections, at least for a day or two. She wasn't sure what to do now, or how she was going to get the now very sick women back onto her feet all the way to the city. 

"We can't stay here," Nora wouldn't last long without a doctor and she was clearly in a lot of pain. 

All the vault dweller could do was nod weakly, trying to block out the hot, blistering pain that radiated out from her shoulder like the bombs from the glowing sea. 

"I'm gonna get you on your feet, alright?" She begun going through the supply's, tossing out anything to heavy and not worth bringing back, then put the bag over her right shoulder and her other arm under the vault dwellers back and Nora naturally put arm around the redheads neck to try to support herself as much as she could. Even now, she didn't want to be a burden.

Cait wrapped her fingers around the survivors belt, first sitting her up slowly and waiting for the elder to give the okay before heaving her onto her feet. There was another nauseating of pain but Nora pushed passed it and slowly opened her eyes again.

"I'm... Okay..." Nora managed to pant out after steadying herself. It wasn't the first time she had been hurt since waking up from the freezer, and it wasn't the first time Cait had to help her, or the other way around, but this time was the first time the stimpaks had so clearly failed. "Must'v gotten... A dud..." She mumbled, taking her mind of the pain of the first few steps.

"Yeah, must 'ave been." The redhead replied with a nod, "could try another?" Though it would be no good against an infection that had already set in, and they both knew it. 

Nora shook her head slowly, hissing as she tried to bare more of her own weight and quickly having to rely more on her friends shoulder. It would be very slow going for the both of them at this rate, but there was no speeding up with unconsciousness fighting her the whole way. 

Each step was painful, and slow and it as hard to concentrate on potential dangers around them when all they could hear was shuffled footsteps and heavy, strangled breaths. They where however fairly lucky; no raiders or super mutants to get in there way as they made there way slowly across to Dimond city. They had picked some of them off on there way through, and it didn't seem like anyone had swooped in to take there spots yet. 

Still, at the shambling pace, Nora never quite made it to the gate on her feet, collapsing just outside of the city unable to bare her own weight. The infection was spreading, those dark veins now shot across her chest and further up her neck and the burning sensation came with it. When her legs finally gave out beneath her, Cait was there to drop her shotgun and scoop the clearly dying women up. 

"S-so...ry..." 

"Shh, no no, don't go apologising." The redheads heart was racing and adrenaline surged again, pushing her forward. "Where so close." She could see Dimond city security and the gaits from here, if only the sole survivor could get there, she was sure she could be saved. Everything in her raced, and made her pick up speed, jogging despite the considerable extra weight. 

As soon as she was within clear earshot, she called out loudly to the Dimond city security guards standing around, none seeming to have noticed her. 

"Help me, damn it!" The redhead hissed out, looking to the closed gait as though it where no better then the bear that did this for standing in there way now. "Hurry it up will ya." 

One of the guards got close, inspecting the gasping women and immediately shaking his head.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, we can't let you in if your carrying some kind of disease. She could infect the entire-" 

"You listen to me, you son of a bitch, if you don't let me the fuck in, I'll kill you myself." The furious Irish women yelled, causing one of the other guards to lift his gun. Damn it she has dropped hers, but there was no way she was going to let Nora die out here. 

"Mm... Cait... H-hey..." The women panted out, shivering again, "s'okay... D-don't d-die over... This..." Tired eyes looked up helplessly. She didn't want Cait to get shot, and could feel the situation escalating. 

"Well why the bloody hell not! These arse-" 

"It's... Okay..." It was caits turn to be cut off, and the pain in her eyes bared her soul. She would never forgive herself if things got rough here. She wasn't about to give up, though. "Piper... Or... N-nick..." She reminded softly. "C-can... Ahh..." 

Cait took a few, long, deep breaths to calm herself. Nora was right as usual, there where people that could definitely help them if she could get a message to them. Getting into a fight would, at the very least, burn that bridge if it didn't get them both outright killed. 

Turning her back on the guards she headed to the small, sheltered section of the stadium, where the walls had come down after the initial explosion more then 200 years ago. She moved to the back and carefully laid her friend down, fussing for a moment with her pocket before injecting the shivering body with another stimpak. It might not help the infection, but hopefully it could stall what was happening just a little longer. 

"Alright, love." Cait leant down and gave her friend a soft kiss on the forehead, partly to comfort Nora, and partly encase she would never get to do it again. "You hold on, Ya have me word I'm not gonna fight 'em okay? I'll be back. Just keep thinkin' about breathin', don't you..." For a moment she actually choked up, "don't you go anywhere." 

Nora gave a little nod, scrunching her eyes shut again to block out the light burning into her eyes. The Chems did loosen the belt around her chest a little, but she was just trying her hardest not to cry out and worry her already stressed lover even more.

Cait got up, marching over to the intercom. 

"Dimond city secur-" 

"Piper! I know you'll get this message, I know you listen in on all this crap! The there bastard sons of a mole rat won't let me through, Nora's hurt and there worried she is infectious... She hasn't got all that long to get help..." 

"P-piper, that reporter? She isn't here." He begun to explain again the reasons why and managed to get half way through his lecture before piper could be heard in the background. 

"What's that? Your going to let a Dimond city resident die outside the gate? What will the people think about you when they read that story." 

"I'm sorry it's protocol, I can't let someone in who could infect the whole city." 

Cait, even in all her fear, couldn't help but crack a small smile. Nora was right, and piper was, well... Piper... 

After a few more threats the guard finally, finally pushed the button to allow the door to be raised and the tired redhead returned to her lovers side to scoop her up again. 

"Hangin' in there?" Cait asked as she pulled the vault dweller up, getting nothing but a small nod in response. "Good." 

Before she got to far the Raven reporter had jogged up to her side, looking over there friend with her usual curiosity. 

"Hey, blue." Pipers voice was soft, sympathetic, much calmer then the Irish girls rough and frightened tone. "What happened?" She asked, automatically looking up to Cait when it became obvious she couldn't answer. 

"She got bitten by this sick lookin' bear. it's some kinda infection or somethin'. can't for the life of me think what." She was thankful when the reporter helped support there friend on the way up the stairs, and then the much more careful trip down. 

"Hey, take her to my place, I'll get the doc. It's closer." And warmer, and safer. It also would keep her out of the site of security that could harass them again.

"Right." Cait nodded and headed inside, Nats eyes watching them carefully from where she had been selling her papers.

As soon as they where inside, the younger laid her injured friend on the lounge, her good arm towards the wall and injury facing closer to her. She did seem to have settled down some, but the redhead didn't know if that was a good thing, or a bad thing. She had seen people get real quiet and calm before dying, and with the way the dark streaks where slowly working there way over her body, and now down onto her fingers, it was hard to tell if she would even respond to treatment. 

Still, Cait lent in to her lover, kneeling down on the floor and putting an arm around Nora's shuddering body. She kissed her cheek again, whispering softly into her ear and telling her everything she meant to the redhead. She had to hold Nora had to hold on, because if she died, The Irish girl just didn't know how she was going to go on, or what to do after this. 

When the older women took a very strained breath, the shotgunner kissed her again softly, stroking her good arm. What on earth was taking piper so long? She wasn't going to leave to check, but the stress was certainly starting to make her feel sick to her stomach.

Finally after what felt like hours, but was only a few minuets, piper returned with the tall, dark haired doctor in toe. He quickly moved past her, kneeling down to undo the bandages and get a good look at the full extent of the injury and infection he was dealing with. 

"How is she doc?" Piper asked as the final layers of bandage where peeled away to revel a very nasty, half stimpak healed wound. She skin around it was dark, bloody, and had a very faint smelling Oder that was closer to dish cleaner then an infection. 

"What did you say she was bitten by?" Dr.sun asked, looking up at Cait for a moment to examine the other survivor of the attack. 

"A damn bear." The redhead still had an arm over her lover, and she could feel the body beneath shaking like a wet dog in the rain. It should have been obvious, she thought, from the massive size of the wound. 

"A Yao guai? Did it have any distinctive markings? Did it have a faint green glow, or dark black fur?"

"I dunno. It was skinny, looked sick. Went down easy. Was kinda pale. Didn't stop to ask it's name." She sounded exactly as frustrated as she was, Nora could be dying, and he was asking pointless questions. 

"I'm going to flush her system, remove any radiation, and push in large quantities of antibiotics. If she doesn't respond quickly, it would be best to amputate this arm." 

"Wait, hold on! You can't do that!" The redhead was on her feet, "how's she meant ta survive out here with one arm? Do ya even know what it's like out there?" 

"If i don't, and the infection spreads to her heart, lungs or brain, she will definitely die." The doctor replied, sounding more then a little annoyed himself. "It's better to remove the limb, and if she survives that operation, then you can worry about what it's like 'out there'. The only reason I don't advise doing it as soon as possible, is how likely it is that she will die on the table in this condition." If they could get her just a little better, stronger breaths, less thready pulse, her chances where much better. He might as well try to save the limb wile they where at it.

Either way, he begun hooking up the medication, and giving injections, trying to help her body fight off the infection raging through her system. 

Piper walked over quietly, putting her hand on the redheads shoulder. She could see how stressed the other women was getting over blue, and wished she could think of something to ease her worries.

"Cait, blues going to be okay." She started quietly. "She's strong, she will survive even if the doctor dose remove her arm." And the Raven reporter honestly believed that about her best friend. As long as she was still fighting, as long as she was still breathing, the women out of time would keep pulling off the impossible. 

"How can you say that?" Caits reply was shaken, words Jittering about in her mouth beyond her control. "You don't know she will be okay..."   
Piper looked away, she didn't really know. She had so much faith in Nora though, and they had all seen each other through some pretty scary shit out in the commonwealth, this would be no different.


	3. Chapter 3

Hours crept by, and piper and Cait didn't leave there friends side. She would sometimes groan or shift, consciousness returning for a few moments though she would quickly fall still again. Even with all the medication, even with all the Chems, she seemed to have gotten worse and not better. The Raven reporter could see it long before the Irish women, and nervously bit her lip when she realised what had to be done. 

"Hey Cait?" She knelt down next to her best friends lover, where she has been resting, sitting on the floor with her head in Nora's lap. "If we... If we don't to this now I don't think blues gonna make it..." 

The redhead gave a long sigh, scrunching her eyes shut; just wishing she knew what Nora would want done. Cait didn't want to let her go, but this hardly seemed fair. If things where reversed, she wasn't sure she would want to wake up with one less arm and in so much pain. 

"Come on, I can't do this without you." And she was sure if she did, the other would come raging after her with that shot gun in tow if something went wrong. Piper needed the other women on bored. 

There was a long quiet pause and she sat up slowly, "fine, go tell that damn doctor to get ready." He had gone off to ready the surgery and find some assistance long ago. "I'll bring her." 

"Will you be okay on your own?" 

"I said I'd bring her!" She snapped, turning to glare daggers at the reporter. 

"Okay, okay. Im just trying to help Ya know." Piper put her hands up defensively then got to her feet and backed out of the room quietly. 

"I'm so sorry..." Cait whispered to her friend, finally letting the tears she was holding back fall. "Please, forgive me for what I'm gonna' do to ya..." 

Carefully she leant in and unclipped the portable computer that haven't been off her wrist in far to long, leaving a mark where it had been pressing against her all to pale and now stained with black streaks, skin. Once it was safely sitting ontop of pipers printing press she lifted cooling fingers and slipped off the pair of rings that she never took off. Her wedding bands. Reminders of everything she lost in that vault and everything she had gained in the new world.

"Your hurtin' I know. Just try to hold on." She carefully moved one arm under the neck of the wounded vault dweller and the other under her knees and heaved her up carefully. 

Nora gave a faint groan and scrunched up her eyes again, though she fell back into sleep faster and faster each time, as more of her strength ran dry. In truth the Irish girl was glad she wasn't fully conscious, it was better this way. Each breath seemed more strained then the last, and her body shivered as it was exposed to the cool Dimond city night and out of pipers cosy little house. 

It wasn't far for Cait to carry her, thankfully, and as soon as she was down in the mega surgery centre the shivers started to die down. Still it took every inch of the woman's willpower to lay her lover down on the prepared table. 

Was she really going to let them do this?

Piper and the doctor, as well as his assistance where already waiting; the latter moved in like vultures the second she was on her own. The reporter moved to caits side, knowing she had to get her best friends lover out of the room to let her cool off.

"Come on cait, let go have a beer." The last thing the doctor needed was them in the way, the room was small enough as it was without them taking up space. 

"I'm not leavin', you can forget it." She wanted to be there, even though she was well aware that what she was probably going to see was her friends death rather then anything else. 

"She'll pull through, blues tough." Piper tried to coax, "where only in the way here, better to leave it to the doctor." Carefully she gave the redhead a tug in the direction of the stairs. "She's got a better chance without us in the way."

Slowly caits shoulders sunk and she moved to give Nora one last little kiss on the forehead before following the raven out and back into the busy streets. All she could hope for now was that her friend would survive the surgery, or go quick and quiet in under the aesthetic. 

"I dun want ta' be out here." She fought back more tears that where threatening to fall, she didn't want to go to the dugout and get waisted as tempting as the idea was; she wanted to have a clear head in case she was needed, but even more then that she didn't want to be seen all soft and upset by every bastard in town. 

"Let's go back to my place then." Piper carefully lead the way back, looking over her shoulder to make sure Cait was following. 

The redhead held onto herself, silently heading inside and sitting down on the lounge where her lover had been laying not to long before. She didn't feel much like talking, and it took her awhile to take the bottle the reporter handed her once she had settled in. 

Every moment seemed to stretch on forever. 

Cait bit her lip, deep in the darker parts of her own mind. Nora was so cold when they touched; Her lips had taken a faint tinge of blue. She had seen death creep up on people before, and knew all to well that she was already pretty far gone when the sole survivor was laid on that table. 

"Would've been kinder ta shoot us both..." The Irish girl half whispered, her voice tired and dry. 

"Don't talk like that, blue is hanging in there." Piper put her own bottle down; a grim expression that was only faintly masked by her attempt to appear hopeful. "she wouldn't want that for you anyway." 

Cait looked away again, feeling the slow crawl of time tighten the vice grip on her chest even more. Several hours felt like days and it wouldn't be until two in the morning that she couldn't bare the wait any longer and got up. She was going to check on Nora, she just couldn't sit around doing nothing while her lover was in such a state. 

She pushed the door open and let it slam shut behind her, making a b line directly for the mega surgery centre. She didn't bother knocking, or even calling out, and just walked straight through the door and down the stairs; looking around and trying to get her bearings in the brightly lit room. 

What she sore, turned her stomach. There was a lot of blood, and an arm now laying disembodied on the floor in a trash can that no one had time to get rid of her. The drops of blood lead in a sickening trail all the way up to the table, where Nora's body lie naked from the waist up, pads placed over her chest, and bandages covering her left shoulder that no longer had its limb attached. Grey eyes where open and lifeless, though her chest was rising and falling sharply, being forced to expand by a tube down her throat. The rest of her was so quiet, and unnaturally still, and that familiar tinge of blue had set into her fingers and bare toes now as well. 

"No... No no no no..." She moved over to the table quickly, pushing the stunned doctor aside, "no, love..." She ran her fingers back through the elder woman's hair then put her ear to her chest where it was jerking. 

There was the loud, forced sounds of her breaths, and under that, a heart beat so faint Cait wasn't sure if she was imagining it. "I'm so sorry..." She lifted her head and looked at those lifeless grey eyes. "God... What the hell happened to you..." 

"She is still alive, I've put her into a coma to allow for better treatment." the doctor interrupted, "she was suffering a great deal of discomfort, this will give her body a chance to rest and heal."

The redhead only took in half of what he said, leaning down to carefully stroke the soft skin of her remaining arm, still mostly untouched by a life in the wasteland. 

"Is she gonna make it?" Cait took a deep breath, "is she gonna wake up?" 

"It's hard to say, at this point." He admitted, though there was still confidence in doctor Suns voice. "If I can get the toxins out of her system, she should begin breathing on her own again, and we'll move on from there." 

The shotgunner swallowed back the chocking feeling that had crept up on her and lifted Nora's hand to kiss the back softly. "Okay darlin', did ya hear that?" Tears begun to sneak up again though as she looked into those dull eyes. "You'd have somethin' smart say I'm sure, bout lookin' like hell. Gotta get better so ya can tell me off for bein' such a softy after me callin' you that..." 

Finally doctor sun moved into the younger woman's line of sight in order to keep her attention and end the one sided conversation,"You should let me and my assistant get back to work. Her condition is critical."

"I'm not goin' I won't leave her again." Cait tightened her grip on her friends hand. The worst was over, she wanted to be there if anything happened for better or for worse. The redhead didn't want Nora to wake up, frightened and in pain in this place with no idea what was happening, and she really didn't want her to loose her fight on her own. 

"Fine fine, just stay out of the way." His assistant returned with another blood pack, and several drugs that Cait didn't even recognise in somewhat filthy old syringes and begun to poke and prod her again, hooking her up to even more pre war medical equipment. 

Caits eyes fell on her friends half bandaged half bear chest and sighed. "Don't'ya have a blanket or somthin'." Not only was she shivering with cold before she was put to sleep, but the redhead couldn't help but feel like she was betraying the vault dweller, who still liked at least a little privacy when she could get it. 

The doctor ignored her but his assistant, a women with dark brown eyes and hair to match, shuffled off to the other room before returning with a stained but clean blanket, handing it off to Cait who carefully covered her lovers body, immediately feeling a little calmer for the simple action. 

"There ya go, me darlin'." She leant in and kissed her cool cheek softly as they injected something into her arm that made her body shiver involuntarily. "I'm right here."


	4. Chapter 4

Cait waited by her lovers sickly form for the rest of the night and into the next morning, softly encouraging her to keep fighting. Nora was so weak that the Irish girl was sure she would slip away between her fingers if she didn't hold on tight enough, and none of the colour had come back to her face. Slowly she ran her hands up and down the remaining arm, trying to give it back some of its warmth and hopefully give the vault dweller something to hold onto. She was tired, God was she tired. She couldn't let herself fall asleep yet though, not until the women she was holding was breathing on her own. 

The redhead glanced over to the pre war pump that had some serious repairs done to it over the years. It rattled, and the pump was jerking up and down far less smoothly then it was meant to, but it was keeping her lover alive so she couldn't be to upset with the state of the thing. It dawned on her that the Nora may already be gone from the body in front of her more then once during the night. She had to be resuscitated the doctor had later let slip to his assistant as he himself grew weary, and that thought terrified the usually fairly stoic young women. 

Still, Cait wouldn't leave. If it came down to it, she wanted to be the one to pull the plug and let her go. It almost felt like it was her place, as hard as it would be. Some hopeless part of her almost wanted her to die in her sleep, comfortable and safe, while the pain was held at by by all these meds. It would be better, she thought, then her waking up and dying in pain in a few days time from infection or blood poisoning. 

More tears came to her eyes, and they just kept coming. It hurt the redhead inside far deeper then anything she had ever felt before, and she has been through a lot. Finally, she had someone who cared for her, who loved her, who would do anything for her, and then she goes and dose this. 

Cait was so far buried in her sorrow that she didn't even notice at first when the body on the table begun to blink, trying to clear sore and tired eyes that where flooded with a haze of powerful pain medications. It wasn't until the doctor moved to check her pupils that the younger cleared her head enough to notice. 

"Welcome back, miss Nora." Dr. Sun greeted calmly, and the redheads eyes lit up like fireworks. The pain was immediately shoved aside for the excitement. Her tiredness was completely forgotten when the hand she had been holding gripped her back ever so slightly. 

"Oh god I thought... I thought you where gone... You scared the life out of me!" It came out in a stuttered ramble, tripping over her words and she tried to express to her lover just how frightening it had been. 

Nora closed her eyes as the tube was finally removed, letting her cough hard and breathe on her own. Her body ached all over, and she was exhausted. Each cough tore through her weak body and left it shaken. A deep, heavy, wet cough that managed to turn down the redheads excitement enough for her to at least form clear thoughts again. 

"Hey, it's alright, deep breaths." Cait immediately changed gears, helping the elder to sit up and lean against her shoulder so she could clear whatever it was in her lungs that was preventing her from breathing normally. "I got you. Breathe."

Slowly the usually fiery young women rubbed calming circles over her friends back, not even flinching when the gunk from her lungs finally came up on her shoulder much to Nora's embarrassment. The coughs started to die down after that though, so Cait could care less. It was stopping her friend from getting enough air, and now at least some of it was dislodged. 

"You alright love?" The younger whispered softly when the coughing slowed to a stop, still rubbing her back affectionately. 

Nora nodded, shivering at how cold the whole world seemed to be. Much of the pain was still numbed, though some thing was defiantly different then when she had gone to sleep. The odd feeling of lightness at her left side that was quickly explained when she tried to move a phantom limb that was no longer hooked up to her brain. 

"W-what?" The sole survivor wheezed, trying to lift her to heavy head to see what had happened and try to make sense of everything that was going on. 

Caits expression became saddened, knowing exactly what her lover has just realised. It didn't change anything though. She would find a way to help Nora survive out here even if it killed her. 

"The infection spread to fast, we where gonna lose you..." The redhead explained quietly, "you where barely hangin' in there... The doctor said ya had a chance if they removed ya whole arm, I had ta give you a chance." 

Nora went into thought, as much as she could with the drugs clouding her mind, and put her head back on her friends shoulder. She couldn't hold herself up, and it was to late now to worry about her arm. The vault dweller was worried, how could she get by in a place like this with only one arm? Surely she couldn't protect the people she cared about anymore. Had it happened before the war, she could have gotten by just as easily, though now out in the wasteland she would be defenceless. 

"Don't worry, I'll figure somethin' out." Cait whispered, holding her close and taking in a deep breath of the smell of sweat and blood and cleaning products, and being so thankful for them. There would be such a long way to go before she would even know for sure that Nora wouldn't succumb to her wounds, the commonwealth didn't exactly make keeping a wound free of infection easy. It didn't matter though, cause right then and there she was alive, conscious, breathing... More the. She had hoped for not even an hour before. 

After some prodding the redhead was convinced to lay her wounded lover down again so she could be looked over by the doctor. It was harder to let go then she wanted to admit, but at least this was a start. 

Nora reached her right hand up to hold her head, there was a painful screeching headache that made it hard to think, and she wasn't sure how to calm it down. 

"Sore head, love?" Cait whispered, taking her hand away from where she was pulling at her own hair, that obviously wouldn't help. "I'll get you somethin' for it, darlin'." She looked up at the doctors assistant, her tone immediately changing from caring to demanding, "what are you doin' standin' around? Can't ya see she's in pain?" 

"Miss Cait, there isn't much more we can do at this point." It was all a matter of waiting now. There where already pain killers coursing through her body, and not much more could be given safely. 

The doctor confirmed that with a nod, rubbing his tired eyes, "this facility was not designed for long term care, and her body is unlikely to survive stronger Chems." He turned to his assistant and gave a nod, "go and find miss piper, she can help bring her home." 

Cait looked down at her lovers pained expression, she probably would be more comfortable in a real bed. Nora had built them a nice little getaway in Dimond city, though they rarely used it. The redhead hoped piper would stay with them though. At least until she worked out how to take care of the elder woman in her condition. 

Once his assistant was gone he turned his gaze to the Irish woman. "You'll need to keep the wound clean, and give her antibiotic injections every morning and every night if she is to stand a chance at recovery." He explained flatly, as though he where talking about the weather and not the love of her life. "She needs to be kept warm, and given pain medication as needed. You'll have to continue the Iv fluids until she's well enough to sit up and drink. If her condition changes, you are to report it to me as soon as possible." 

Cait nodded as the latch clicked and piper made her way down into the crowded room.

"oh jeeze blue..." She couldn't hold back the shock at her best friends condition, "you okay?" 

"She's in pain, but she's alive." the redhead almost whispered, not wanting to make her lovers headache any worse then it already was. "They can't give her anythin' else, I'm gonna take her home." 

There was a pause from the reporter and he gaze shifted to the side uncomfortably. "If you don't want to take her back to your place, you know your welcome at the public occurrences." 

Piper knew Cait would struggle to take care of Nora on her own. She was clearly a mess herself by now, and if the vault dweller took a sudden turn, the Raven didn't trust that her best friends lover could be safely left alone. 

"I was gonna ask you actually..." The redhead kept her voice hushed, stroking a cool arm to try to settle the sick vault dweller down, "can you come and stay, just until she settles." 

The reporter gave a sigh of relief. This made everything so much easier, she was actually expecting Cait to resist the idea!

"I'll help ya get her home safe, don't worry." Piper carefully moved closer and helped lift her friends legs, making it easier for the other woman to lift her shoulders. 

The movement made Nora give a sharp cry, suddenly very aware of all the pain her body was in again. The redhead bit her lip then carefully laying her back down and then tossing the keys to the reporter. Quickly putting an arm behind the elders neck she then looped her other arm under the women's knees, scooping the vault dweller up like a child. This might be a little less comfortable, but it was quicker, and the sooner she could get her wounded friend back into bed, the better. 

"Just open the door, we'll be fine." Cait said a little more roughly then she intended, her own tired body objecting to the weight after missing an entire night of sleep. 

Fortunately piper was quick, and got out in front of them to hold doors open and lead them right out into the glaring sunlight, before quickly heading to the large house in the centre of town and unlocking the door. The reporter couldn't help but notice what people where saying, and how they where looking at her best friend, her natural nosiness didn't have an off switch. Nothing they where saying was helpful though, wondering allowed why the crying body in the redheads arms was still alive more then anything. They couldn't get inside and away from the noise fast enough for any of them. 

Once the door was unlocked Cait headed to the dark corner where Nora had set up the most clean and comfortable bed she could find, with blankets still vault white, and pillows to match. It was the best place the redhead had ever slept, but more importantly now it would be be where her lover could rest. 

"Ahh... Ehh..." The soft cries of pain from the vault dweller where heart breaking for both her guardians. her eyes where scrunched shut and her breath ragged and short even as she was finally laid down. 

"Darlin' breathe." Cait knelt down next to her on the bed, taking the elders hand in hers. "No no.. Don't..." He pleaded softly as her lovers breaths fell to shallow. "Where home now... Your safe... Don't... Don't stop..." She carefully ran her free hand through dark hair. She could feel her struggling against her own body. Maybe the move had been to much for her? Maybe she was done? 

"I'm right here, I'm not leavin'." She tried to encourage, more tears falling down her cheeks again. God, maybe it would have been better to leave her on that damn table. "Don't quit on me now love, not like this..." 

She kept trying to soothe her for a few long moments before looking up at the stunned piper who didn't seem to know what to do for once in her life. 

"Get her somethin' for the pain." She ordered, sounding confident despite her tears. 

"Cait, the doc-" Cait cut her off as soon as she begun to speak, not wanting to waist anymore time with chit chat while Nora was crying. 

"I know what he said, I'm sayin' get her somethin'." She had done to much harm already, she wasn't going to let her lover lay there screaming for hours until the pain subsided. If Cait knew her way around anything, it was Chems, and some med X in a low enough dose could put her to sleep, hopefully without overdosing her. It was a risk she was willing to take now, though. Nora was not going to die in there bed while suffering horribly. 

Piper did what she was asked, going into the first aid stash that the always cautious owner of the house had stashed away; though she doubted even blue would have seen this coming.

"You know what could-" she was cut off again as Cait roughly took the bag of Chems off of the reporter. She knew exactly what could happen. She could inject her lover and her lover could stop breathing, or worse go into convulsions, but leaving her in agony wasn't an option. 

"If she... If she fits I'll give her the rest of the dose..." The redhead mumbled mumbled, "she'll go quiet... Should be quick..." Her eyes betrayed the pain she was so desperately trying to hide. 

Pipers eyes widened at the realisation, suddenly regretting handing over the bag. She could see that the shock from the pain would probably cause her best friends body to shut down before to long, she would simply give in. It was an awful way to go, she knew that, but the thought of being actually responsible for her friends death? That cut deep, weather it was for the best or not.

God she hoped Nora would just fall asleep and get some rest. The younger had never drawn up an injection that made her feel quite so sick to her stomach with dread before. She pushed the needle into the vile and pulled back the plunger just enough. It wouldn't take much, not in her current condition. 

"Ehh... Ehh..." The women on the bed in front of her struggled, reaching up to pull at her hair again with her remaining hand though piper was there to stop her this time. 

"It's okay blue." She tried to sound confident, tried to hide her fear. She didn't want to make the woman any more frightened then she probably already was. "Where gonna take good care of you." 

Cait took her arm and turned the wrist up, rubbing the soft skin for a second. She hesitated, of coarse she did, if she messed this up and caused an overdose she was going to have killed the only person she ever let herself love. 

"I love you, me darlin'" she whispered, finally taking a deep breath and giving the injection into pale flesh. "Don't forget, I love you." She tossed the needle on the bedside table and leant over Nora, leaning down to kiss her softly on the forehead as the Chems rushed her system and she started to go quiet. "That's the way, jus' go to sleep." 

"C-Cait..." The vault dweller managed to whisper as the pain subsided and was replaced by a heavy fog. "L...Lo...Ve..." 

"I know, love. Shhh..." Tears ran down her cheek and fell onto her lovers as she finally relaxed. The redhead let her lovers body settle completely before moving a cheek just over Nora's lips to make sure she was still breathing, letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding when soft puffs ghosted across damp skin. 

Piper looked on, more then a little worried for her friend. She didn't have the same kind of experience that Cait did with overdoses and it took her a lot longer to come to the realisation that she wasn't going to die then it did the redhead.

"Thank god. Your stronger then you look, always 'ave been." Cait whispered to her sleeping friend, adjusting the pillow underneath her head to try to make her more comfortable. Then she laid down at her lovers side, putting an arm around her now relaxed body and pulling her in close. She was tired, mentally and physically exhausted, and wasn't going to be parted from her lover again.


	5. Chapter 5

When Cait finally awoke it was once again night; her friends cool body was still pressed against hers and the darkness had seeped in to every corner of there little home. The smell of dying blood was starting to take over, and the soft covers she had pulled over them brushed against her skin, both distracting from the cold. Her eyes where heavy, itchy and bloodshot from all the crying, and she was still so tired. At first she fought it, wanting to close her eyes and go right on back to her peaceful dream though that thought faded as the memories of the past few days came creeping back.

She carefully lifted herself up, letting the blanket slip down from her shoulder and her eyes wander over the quiet and all to still body laying next to her. The redhead took a deep breath, readying herself for the worst and gently reached up to put her fingers just above the vault dwellers slightly parted lips. After a moment she couldn't feel anything, and her heart sank. 

"Nora?" She shivered softly reaching up to pet back messy hair off of the vault dwellers damp forehead. A quiet grief filling her chest as she leant her ear down to her lovers cold, bare chest to try to listen for any heart beat, not wanting to panic before she knew for sure. 

Thud... Thud... Thud... It was quiet and slow but steady, the organ pulsing slowly with life though sluggish in its owners sedated state. There was a soft crackle to, when a chest that barely rose the vault dweller took in quiet and shallow breaths. 

For the second time that day Cait let out a sigh. This was just exhausting, the whole thing. 

"Your just tryin' ta scare me to death." She whispered, a little smile daring to cross the redheads exhausted features. She sat up slowly and took a deep breath, then sat up and let her fingers trail through now messy hair carefully. "Should quit worryin' about you, should know better." 

Finally Cait rubbed the sleep from her eyes and looked around the room slowly. In the corner in a chair, piper sat back, dozing under the mounted head of a death claws she had killed with Nora months ago. Empty bottles of Nuka cola at her feet, and a full one still in her hand. It was easy for the redhead to forget that the reporter had very little sleep to, and was all but running on empty. She obviously fought it hard, caffeine can only do so much though. 

With a stiff and sore grunt of discomfort the Irish woman pulled herself to her feet, shuffling over and taking the bottle off of there friend and setting it on the table where it wouldn't spill. She wouldn't bother herself, but the vault dweller still liked to keep everything clean, or as clean as possible for the wasteland. Old habits die hard, and her lover had spent most of her life safe and secure before the war. 

The pair didn't talk about it all that much, a lot of it was still to raw for Nora and Cait knew better then to pry. She did cry on the anniversary of her wedding to her deceased husband, and the redhead just quietly held her while she let it out. Cait was never any good at talking about those kind of things, but she knew enough to listen and hold her tight until the pain faded into the back of her lovers mind again. That night she learnt more about the vault dwellers husband then she had known in the entire time prior.

Cait headed for there food stash, needing something, anything to quiet her angry stomach. As she took out the jerky and begun to pad back to her friends side she realised just how much she would miss Nora's could never manage to do it again. Sure she would learn to cook and shoot and load her gun with one hand after awhile, but for that to happen she would have to regain a lot of her strength, and the redhead wasn't ready to allow herself to believe that could happen yet at the risk of being shattered if her lover stayed sickly. 

What would they do then? It was hard enough to survive as a woman in the commonwealth while totally able bodied, let alone if she remained sickly. Would Nora even want to live that way? Could she? The shotgunner had never met anyone with a serious illness who was thriving out there, those that where died young. 

Cait shook the thought away and sat down next to her beloved vault dweller. No. They would be different. Nora had fought her way through dozens of gunners to save the redhead, there was no way she was going to let anything happen to her now just because she was injured. 

A few hours slipped by slowly, and nothing seemed to change. Piper eventually got up and tiredly begun to shuffle about, boiling water to help her friend keep her wound nice and clean. She was still pretty tired though, and no amount of sugar could fight off a lack of sleep.

"How's she holding up?" The reporter finally managed to ask as the caffeine begun to kick in. 

"Sleepin', but she doesn't seem to be hurtin' to bad at the moment. Dunno when she'll wake up but the meds should be wearin' off soon." And that had her worried, again Cait could be forced to try to dose her just enough to put her back to sleep, and not enough to kill her. It was a fine line, one she was unsure she gauged perfectly the first time, since her lovers breathing and heart where both so slow. It could have been a little to much. She'd remember that for next time. 

There was a soft groan from the body beneath Cait that quickly grabbed both of there attention. A pale arm reached up to grab at the redheads shirt, as tired eyes opened to a blurry mess that was more then a little unsettling. 

"Cait... What's?" Nora breathed, she could recognise her lover, but little else made sense yet. In the haze of the Chems in her system, everything seemed to spin dangerously at the slightest move, and it made a panic rise within her. She didn't know where they where, or if they where safe, and she couldn't properly remember what had happened. For all she knew, she had been knocked unconscious in a fire fight, and her lover could be wounded. 

"Hey darlin', I'm right here." The redhead could see the confusion on her friends face and took the cool hand in her own and leaning over to give her a tender, brief kiss on the lips, just enough to let her know she was close. 

"Nnhh... Cait... Are you... Alright?" Her voice was soft and broken, but still beautiful to the Irish woman's ears. It brought a smile to her face and she let out a small laugh. Here she was, laying in bed, naked but for the blankets and barely conscious, and she was worried about her lover more then herself. 

"I'm fine, love, you're the one who took a beatin'." Cait couldn't help but adore Nora all the more in that moment for her misplaced concern, though no doubt she probably did look a mess herself and there was good reason for her to feel like something was off. 

"Hey there, blue" piper chirped, and her friends head turned to face where she thought the voice was coming from, though it made her entire field of vision swim dangerously. 

The vault dweller pressed her eyes shut in an attempt to stop the sudden urge to vomit. The dizziness that overcame her was like being sea sick, while on totally dry land. The reporter noticed her friends distress and knelt down at the vault dwellers bedside, much closer and easier to see. 

"Piper..." Nora mumbled, her voice slow and slightly slurred. "Where are we?" 

"Your home, of coarse. Don't worry, Cait and I have got you covered." The Raven chirped happily, feeling relieved to see her best friend awake once more. She had to admit, even with her usual positive outlook, piper had been worried. She really did look like she was a goner. 

"Ergh... My head..." The vault dweller groaned, pulling her hand away from her lovers to tug at her own hair again. It was all she could think to do to get control over the horrible throbbing and waves of intense wooziness unrivalled by any hang over she had ever experienced in her entire life.

"I know, love." Cait soothed, taking her lovers hand away from her hair again and leaning in to distract her with another kiss to her cool lips. 

In all honesty it was probably what they had done to keep her alive till that point, more then the injury itself that was causing her discomfort. It was actually a feeling the redhead could recognise quite clearly from the reaction. Bad Chems, in an unregulated system could make even a healthy person feel like they had been run over by a truck let alone someone who was already unwell. The whole thing had her body warn way to thin. 

"Maybe we should try getting something into her other then drugs." Piper suggested, wanting to help out any way she could. "Might help." 

Cait nodded, pulling herself back to her feet and letting go of her friends hand slowly in hopes she wouldn't immediately to back to her self harm in an attempt to sooth herself. She wasn't going to tell the vault dweller off for trying her best to cope with the horrible throbbing, and the shotgunner wasn't going to treat her like a child that had to take orders no matter how sick she was. Nora was always independent and strong willed, while she wasn't thinking clearly, Cait would physically protect her from further harm until she was lucid enough to realise what she was doing couldn't help. 

With a loose bit of wire, the cage fighter crafted a hook and fixed it to the wall above the bed closest to the woman's intact right arm, then hung the bag of medicine and fluids from it. Cait was clever, when she had to be, though she was sure her lover could have come up with something better. Nora could make a gun out of radio parts after all, she was an artist when it came to turning wasteland junk into useful gadgets or deadly weapons both. 

"Hold still." whispered the still tired redhead, kneeling down and inserting the end of the attached needle into a vein with little difficulty even in the questionable light. "Just waiten' for you to say somethin' smart, don't want to get used to you bein' so quiet." She joked as she sat up next to her friend and begun to rub her aching scalp. it was enough to get a little smile out of the sole survivor, though she wasn't sure if it was due to her forced humour, or the feeling of having her head massaged. 

"Err... Just lemmy know if you want me to do anything." Piper stammered, even though she had been worried that Cait wouldn't cope, it was the her who felt entirely out of place. 

"It's okay, piper." The redhead smiled and shook her head slowly, "just bein' here's helpin'... Though I think I'll take ya up on that beer you where Offerin' last night if that's still on the table." 

"Of coarse!" The Reporter happily headed out the door to get her friend something, and hopefully some more snacks while she was at it.

The truth was she was helping, just by being the cooler head in the room. It was harder for the tougher shotgunner to fly off the handles while someone else was watching her back. She trusted piper, and she knew that if things got rough the reporter could keep her wits about her, and not let her emotions affect her choices to badly. A counter balance to her own temper, and one that Nora would usually provide. Cait wanted to keep her hands and mind busy, everything was just all to clear and sharp without Chems fogging up her own system, doing everything herself kept her mind off her own pain even if it meant that piper felt as useful as a sac of potatoes with no way of helping.

As time wore on, and the reporter had taken a few detours that held her up, the vault dweller begun to perk up. Dull eyes regained there sparkle, and pale cheeks grew a little pinker. She was still cool to touch but the deathly blue that had seeped into the elders fingers and lips begun to fade away little by little. She shifted a little in her discomfort as thoughts slowly became clearer, and she melted into the redheads gentile massage all the more. It was starting to come back to her, everything that happened, and Cait could see the realisation in those eyes beautiful grey eyes that she just couldn't tare herself away from. 

Nora stared right back as her vision slowly begun to return without the heavy haze, and in those eyes she sore the fear, sleepless night, loss and helplessness that she hid so well from everyone but her. All that anxious waiting had the shotgunner wound up like a spring, and the vault dweller knew just how to bring her back to reality.

"Do I look good?" Nora sighed out of the blue, catching her lover totally off guard, "you keep looking... L-like that... People are gonna talk." 

It took a second for Cait to process the sassy little jab, but it put another smile on her face quickly enough. 

"Think it's a bit late for that, don't you love?" She smirked and leaning over the vault dweller to give her another delicate kiss, only to grin all the wider when finally it the gesture was returned at last.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get hard, cait gets drunk.

Days slipped by in the cool of the large, dark, Dimond city home that belonged to the vault dweller and her lover. It was hard work, much harder then Cait had expected. It was harder then fighting death claws, harder then stabbing a stimpac into her leg after being shot. Sitting there, seeing Nora cough and wheeze, helplessly cry out in her sleep when the pain surged; carefully trying to keep her hydrated, breathing, calm, it tore Cait up inside worse then anything she has ever seen before. 

The redhead would curl up with her lover every night, kissing her cheek and neck, doing everything to distract her friend from her situation. Every day she would stroke Nora's arm, brush her hair, carry her to the bathroom and back. Cait would put on a brave face, tuck in her best friend, and change out the medication keeping whatever infection had caused this at bay. 

Piper would let herself in like clockwork every afternoon when blue was taking a nap and all but force the feisty Irish woman out, she needed a chance to get away, blow off steam, have a drink. People looked at Cait differently when Nora wasn't by her side. They where suspicious, but she didn't care. Walking out that door was always harder then staying, but she knew piper was right and that she needed a rest. 

It was on day seven, with her lover sitting at her side encouraging her, that the sole survivor finally managed to pull her weak and tired body up on her own, slouching forward under her own weight. She was panting, and her head was swimming, but he looked up to see her friend grinning back at her and couldn't help but smile herself. 

"Good Job darlin'." The shotgunner praised, putting a hand on her friends back to help steady her. "We'll have you up an' shootin' shamblers again in no time." 

Nora gave a slight nod, she wasn't so sure herself but she trusted Cait. It was all she could do to try to hold on for her friend. With everything the redhead had already lost in her life the vault dweller wasn't about to add to it by letting go without fight. The truth was though, she was ready to give in. As hard as she had fought, it wasn't for herself anymore. 

"Pipers comin' soon, do ya want me to stay this time?" She asked bluntly, not one for beating around the bush. 

The tired eyed women looked up at her friend and shook her head. "No... I'm... Fine..." She panted out; feeling a familiar arm wrap around her back and pull her in close. 

"I'll be back." Cait whispered into her friends ear, kissing her lover softly on the cheek and helping her lay back down carefully. She could tell now, just by the exhaustion on the other woman's face, when she was ready to go back to sleep. Her hands carefully held onto the older woman's far to weak body, it was a big achievement to have her able to sit up on her own, but the redhead wasn't going to let her push her luck. 

Nora gave a soft sigh, she couldn't help but feel like she was holding her friends back. Even with this small improvement, there was no telling when or even if she would ever be able to function again. Depression was setting in, and it was slowly eating at her willpower. 

The younger could see the helplessness in her friends eyes, as much as she tried to hide it. All she wanted was her partner to heal, and yet there was a surrender in those tired grey orbs that she had never seen before even in the worst of situations. 

Cait signed, "listen, I know your scared but-" 

Her words where cut off by a familiar click and the screech of a slightly rusted door swinging open. This little talk would have to wait, piper as always good at cheering Nora up anyway so hopefully the wounded survivor would perk up by the time she got back. 

"I'll finish this later..." She kissed her friends forehead and stood up, stretching out her stiff limbs and walking past piper with a little nod. Cait didn't want to chat right now, and the reporter was smart enough to take the hint. 

"Hey blue! Brought you something good." 

The redhead looked back over her shoulder to see piper with a large pack of sweets, taking up a spot by her lovers bedside. Trusting her friend, Cait would leave quietly and head directly for the dugout inn, where she could at least pretend to forget her troubles for a little while. 

It had occurred to her, while giving Nora the pain medication she so badly needed, that a little of it herself would take the edge off. The cravings weren't there, not like before her lover had saved her life, but the idea definitely stuck out. With a clear head though, she could see how dangerous that would be. Being impaired could have her blindly jabbing the elder woman with the wrong thing, and having her overdose or worse. 

Cait frowned, and gave an loud huff as she sat down on one of the bar stools heavily. Helping her friend through such a horrible injury wasn't even the worst of it. That surrender, that empty cry for the pain to stop that she could see in Nora's usually bright steel grey eyes... 

She was ready to die...

The redhead couldn't stand that thought, that the sole survivor was finally tired. A dark part deep within herself almost wished she had done what she would have done before there travels together, back before her love for Nora had made it so hard to let go. Seeing that injury, hearing the doctors prognosis, the old Cait would have put a bullet in her. Nora would have died, it would tear her up inside, but her lover wouldn't have lived long enough to suffer to the point where she was ready to give up, and Cait? She would go numb the pain with Chems and keep pressing forward until she herself was in the ground not long after. 

She pulled up a drink, Vadime was his usual happy self, glad to serve his favourite customers who had saved his life, and given Travis the courage he needed to be on the radio at the same time. Cait would always be welcome, even if the rest of Dimond city was less then pleased to have her there. Of coarse he knew the young Irish woman only went along with it because of her partner, but it didn't matter. 

Tired, Cait wasn't in the mood to talk today though, and quickly took a bottle without processing much of what the Russian was going on about. It was probably more meaningless jokes anyway, and there really wasn't a good reason for her to entertain his bad sense of humour. 

After the first few glasses though, time started to escape the fiery redhead. To busy thinking about how she could bring the lights back on for Nora, and get her going again, thoughts that became easier to manage as the alcohol numbed her.

Hazed, things seemed a little better. Nora could still recover and maybe she was just so tired from all the pain that once she was feeling better she would want to fight again? Maybe everything could go back to the way it was, there was no reason that Nora couldn't shoot her handgun with one hand, though sniping would become more difficult. They could go back out there and shoot shamblers and bears and giant crabs in the face, and she could admire how her lover always looked so sexy holding a smoking gun.

 

Every sip took away just a little of the darkness, and before she really fully registered what she was doing, Cait had fallen asleep with her head in her arms, resting against the counter of the bar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually wrote this chapter ages ago but never posted it I'm not sully sure why... sorry bout that


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dependency is a dangerous thing

"Cait!" A frantic woman's voice and a hand on her shoulder shaking her brought the redhead back to reality, even if it was a reality where her head felt like it was going to explode. Green eyes looked up slowly at the Raven reporter In front of her, taking in the scared expression, slight glean of sweat from running all the way here, furrowed brows and heavy breathing. Her eyes where puffy, almost like she had been crying, or trying not to cry. It was unusual. 

It didn't click immediately; her mind slowed by the hangover she was sure she would still be feeling next week, but when it did it hit hard.

"What? What is it?" Her own eyes went wide, there was no reason for piper to be here. She wouldn't leave her best friend alone in this state, not unless she really felt like she had to. 

"Blue... She's..." Piper shook a little as she spoke her voice quieter then it should have been. 

Cait didn't wait for an explanation, she pulled herself to her feet and headed right for the door, pushing past anyone in her way. If something had happened to the only person she ever really cared about while she was busy getting sloshed, the redhead was sure she would never forgive herself. 

Around the corner and through the door, she was back at home in record time. The lights where on, the music was still playing softly in the background, and her lover wasn't in there bed. A quick scan around the room found her in the corner, shaking violently, barely breathing, hunched over on the ground breathlessly. 

"Shite..." She moved to her lovers side, clearly piper has tried to help, there was a blanket under her head and had her on her side to try to help her breathing. She was clearly frightened and flustered, unable to find a doctor and not having a lot of experience with this particular ailment. 

Cait however knew what it was the moment she touched her lovers cool skin and felt the goose bumps rise. 

Withdrawal symptoms, nasty ones, and they most certainly could drop or even kill someone in Nora's condition. After being so heavily medicated for days with such addictive Chems, and having piper not know what to give her and when, she had become restless, tried to get up, stumbled, fallen and now lay in a mess all the way into the middle of the house. 

It was her fault, the redhead could see that. If she hadn't gotten so drunk, if she hadn't tried to down the pain in the bottom of a bottle, Nora would have been given her medication when she needed it. 

Piper was at her side a moment later, trying to comfort her friend with a warm hand on her good shoulder. The reporter had seen a lot of things, but this? This looked a lot like the death throws of an animal rather then withdrawals from Chems. In those few moments, she was sure Nora was fighting through her last breaths. 

"Piper, get the bag." Cait ordered firmly, pointing over to the bed where the Chems sat idle. As angry as she was with herself, the Irish woman wasn't going to let her friend suffer like this. She had been there herself, withdrawals where horrible. Even having her leg broken felt better then some of the times she had come down hard off of a bad chem. Sometimes Nora had even been there, not that she knew why Cait looked so sick at that time. She was just a caring friend, and she would look out for the redhead. The vault dweller would sit up with her all night to make sure she was okay, and never once did she complain or even ask questions. The elder just wanted to help, to be there. 

Carefully the Irish woman pulled the elder up into her arms and took out a needle as quickly as she could. When she lifted her lovers remaining arm to give the injection though she couldn't find a vein. That was a first. 

"Blue..." The reporter whispered, letting her hand slip down into her friends and shifting in close on her knees so Nora could feel her there. "I'm right with you, blue." 

Cait shook her head roughly to clear her racing thoughts then grabbed a bandage to tie off her arm and then rub her wrist to try to bring it up a better place to put the needle. 

"Come on, come on..." She mumbled impatiently. Using her shoulder to prop up her lovers head carefully. She was shuddering so bad, Cait didn't want her lying on her back encase she vomited. 

It took her longer then she would have liked, but as soon as she found a good spot she slid the needle in and gave the injection as quickly as she could. "There you go." The redhead kissed the vault dwellers neck softly, tears in her eyes. 

This was her fault. It was all her fault. Cait was the one who wanted to take that job, Cait was the one who put her lover through all the pain of surgery, and now she had her dependant on the very thing Nora had fought so hard to help her recover from, and then she got drunk and left her to go into withdrawals with no one around who would understand how to help her.

The chills slowly died down, and the older woman begun to mumble softly, she could see the pain on her lovers face and wanted to calm her, though the words came out a quiet slurred mess from the combined shock and medication hitting her system. 

Cait just pulled her in close in response, not sure what else she could do to make it up to her beloved friend. 

The Raven haired woman in her red trench coat quickly put everything together, though for once she managed to keep her mouth shut. It didn't matter, though. As long as blue was alright. Nothing she could say would change the mistake Cait had made, it would only make things worse for the both of them. 

"I'm so, so sorry love..." The shotgunner carefully lifted her friend as she managed to slowly regain herself. If piper hadn't found her so quickly, things could have been much worse. Deep inside she was being warn out, bit by tiny bit. "It's my fault..." 

Nora mumbled something else neither of the other women could understand, then closed her eyes, asleep before her head hit the pillow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a short chapter, but you know that's how it is.


End file.
